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Americana UK Premieres Music From Andrew Jobin & The Crispy Boys

Andrew Jobin has travelled around – he was born in Houston but now lives in New Orleans and in between he was raised in six different countries.  He’s been on a musical journey too since getting his first Epiphone Les Paul at the age of 14 – let’s say that the siren call of Nirvana was stronger at the time than the riches of the Americana world.  Nonetheless his new album ‘The River Above Our House‘ with his band the Crispy Boys is solidly anchored in a rich variety of Americana.

The album is out on February 23rd, and ‘Eden‘ is the second single from it.  You’ll hear a train track rock and roll beat and a high soaring fiddle, you’ll hear a troubadour voice that rings with honesty as it searches for a green space in an ever crowded world.

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Americana Highways Premieres New Song By Josh Langston

Americana Highways brings you this premiere of Josh Langston’s song “Living It In A Song” from his forthcoming album Tastes Like Sin, due to be available on March 29.  The album was produced and engineered by Rob Hitchcock and Anthony Browne with assistant engineer Zayno Rayne.  It was mixed and mastered by Rob Hitchcock at South Main Recordings in Bryan, Texas.   This song will be available on January 19.

“Living It In A Song” is Alan Green on drums; Colin Colby on bass;  Anthony Browne and Braydon Watts on electric guitars; Rob Hitchcock on keys and percussion;  Josh Langston on acoustic guitar and lead vocals with additional vocals by James O’Neal and Simone Gundy.  

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Glide Magazine Premieres New Music From Josh Langston

Set against the rustic backdrop of Historic Downtown Bryan, Texas, Tastes Like Sin promises to unfold a love story rooted deep in Texas tradition. While it spans two decades, each track is as fresh as the morning sun, guiding listeners through the classic arc of a romance that starts with the “Promised Land” and draws to a close with “Just Cause.”

Glide is premiering the new song “Still Hurts When It Rains” where Langston shows why he has earned comparisons to Colter Wall and Warren Zeiders with his vocals. This is a modern Americana country tune where the twangy whiny pitch is tossed aside for something more robust.

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Glide Magazine Premieres New Single by Colin Cutler

North Carolina-based singer-songwriter and Army veteran Colin Cutler might very well be the second coming of fellow Carolina musician/historian Dom Flemons. Armed with a banjo, guitar, and harmonicas, Colin’s music draws inspiration from various genres, including early country, blues, old-time, gospel, and rock and roll. It might be safe to say that if Bob Dylan would listen to new music, he might even mark a spot on his playlist for Cutler who evokes a Time Out of Mind/Love and Theft era of folksy and bluesy aesthetics. 

His upcoming album, Tarwater, set to be released on October 31st on Bandcamp and via streaming on November 3rd, is a unique marriage of Culter’s literary and musical interests. In a pilgrimage across the Americana genre, from his folk roots in banjo-based old-time to the gospel music of his Pentecostal upbringing, to honky-tonk country and blues-based roots rock, the lyrics explore the literary works of Flannery O’Connor, the Georgia Catholic writer whom Kurt Vonnegut hailed as “the greatest American short story writer of [his] generation.” Colin has transformed these stories into a captivating musical tapestry weaving together sound that captures the essence of life’s highs and lows.

Cutler first encountered the works of O’Connor during his college years. Initially uncertain about his feelings toward her writing, he recognized the depth of her storytelling, which placed characters in challenging circumstances to explore their true essence, shot through with sparks of the divine. This connection inspired him to record the Peacock Feathers EP (2018), featuring four songs based on characters from O’Connor’s short stories. The EP not only sparked engaging discussions at conferences but also granted Cutler the privilege of performing at O’Connor’s former home, now a museum, in Milledgeville. The project even caught the attention of BBC Introducing, earning him international recognition.

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Americana UK Premieres New Single By Philip Bowen

Appalachia is still a fertile breeding ground for new roots artists.

Appalachia has exerted a massive influence on American roots music over the years, being the region where the original Scottish and Irish settler’s music from Scotland and Ireland mixed with the blues of the black population to create something that is at once familiar but also different. The music was homemade, and played by friends and family rather than by professional musicians. This process is still happening today as the latest musician to emerge from the area, Philip Bowen, uses his Appalachian experiences as inspiration for his album ‘Old Kanawha’. Americana UK’s Martin Johnson caught up with Philip Bowen over Zoom in Detroit to discuss the stories behind ‘Old Kanawha’ and why he thinks there is a vampire in Appalachia. He explains how when he was growing up music was everywhere and at every gathering, including birthdays, weddings and funerals, guests would bring their instruments. He also hints at the challenges posed by Appalachia as he explains that his grandfather’s brother died of black lung, and how serious the current opioid crisis is in Appalachia. As far as his own musical influences are concerned he lists James Taylor, The Milk Carton Kids, Watchhouse, John Prine, and Jason Isbell as modern-day inspirational acts who are also very good storytellers. He also explains how social media has played a big part in his success to date. Finally, he explains that the Scottish influence in Appalachia is still strong as he names Scotland’s Frightened Rabbit as his favourite band of all time.

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Whiskey Riff Premieres Philip Bowen’s New Album

If I’ve said it once I’ve said it 100 times: The best country music right now is coming out of Appalachia.

And West Virginia native Philip Bowen is keeping that trend alive.

If you’re not familiar with Philip, he burst onto the scene with his incredible TikTok videos of himself playing fiddle alongside some great country songs. But he’s not just a fiddle player: Philip’s an amazing singer and songwriter in his own right, and now he’s ready to share some of his own music with the world.

Announced back in May, Philip’s debut album Old Kanawha drops this Friday, August 18.

But we’ve got your first opportunity to hear it before it’s released right here on Whiskey Riff.

The 13-track album is deeply rooted in his Appalachian upbringing, something that Philip tells Whiskey Riff was important to him when he set out to make the project:

“I wanted to try my very best to do as much as humanly possible in West Virginia, Appalachia, with talent from the region.”

It’s that sense of place that shines through on the album, while still remaining relatable to those outside the mountains of West Virginia, on songs like the previously-released “Vampire in Appalachia” and the companion song that follows, “A Murder.”

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